NO POLITICAL PARTY BARRED FROM CONTESTING POLLS: PM In partnership with
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Sunday, 24 September, 2023 I 7 Rabi ul Awwal, 1445
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SAYS LAWS ARE IMPARTIAL, NOT FAVOURING ANY GENDER, AND APPLY TO ALL CITIZENS EQUALLY
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SAYS THOUGH TERRORISM SURGES MANIFOLD, WE KNOWS HOW TO PROTECT SOVEREIGNTY, TERRITORIAL INTEGRITY
STAFF REPORT
ARETAKER Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq on Saturday asserted that there is no ban on any political party from contesting elections and date for the general elections will be announced soon, asserting those behind the May 9 violence would face legal action. “Neither the ECP has not banned any political party, nor imposing restrictions on any political group,” PM Kakar declared, highlighting that the election watchdog's mandate is to conduct polls and the interim government's role of supporting the electoral body. Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq was speaking to Pakistan journalists during a press conference — following his speech at the 78th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) session On the occasion, the Caretaker Prime Minister firmly asserted that Pakistan is not accountable to any government or congressman. “We are not accountable to any government; we are not accountable to any congressman — absolutely not!” PM Kakar said, further highlighting the robust bond between Pakistan and the US. PM Kakar’s remarks came in response to a question posed by a journalist during — asking him about the engagements of Pakistanis in the United States with congressmen in relation to the human rights abuses and arrests in Pakistan. He was also questioned about the recent arrests, particularly those of women, which came in the wake of the crackdown on Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) after its Chairman Imran Khan's party members and supporters violently reacted to his arrest in May this year. The prime minister said the country's laws are impartial, not favouring any gender, and apply to all citizens equally. PM Kakar also spoke about the resurgence of terrorist threats by dangerous entities such as Tehreek-e-Taliban (Pakistan) and Daesh was a matter of grave concern for Pakistan and the entire international community. "Pakistan is facing terrorism for the
last two decades," he said. The premier stressed that a stable Afghanistan continued to remain an important foreign policy priority for Pakistan and the United States. Kakar said we are holding constructive dialogue with the interim Afghan government. "We know how to defend and protect our sovereignty and territorial integrity," he said, and also highlighted that Pakistan has always respected the territorial integrity of Afghanistan and we will continue doing so. Questioning India's handling of minorities and the human rights violations in its wake, the prime minister said: "We must counter all terror without discrimination, including the rising threat posed by far-right extremist and fascist groups such as Hindutva-inspired extremists, threatening genocide against Indian Muslims and Christians alike." The prime minister also lamented the large number of people killed in Manipur. He added New Delhi needed to oppose state terrorism and address the root causes of terrorism such as poverty, injustice and foreign occupation, and distinguish genuine freedom struggle from terrorism. Regarding the brutal killing of a Sikh leader in Canada which came as a rude shock to the world, PM Kakar said that the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi-backed ideologues of Hindutva are becoming emboldened in a manner that they are now going beyond the region.
High fuel prices push weekly inflation to 38.6pc g
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IMF FORECAST PUTS AVERAGE CPI FOR CURRENT FISCAL YEAR AT 25.9PC PROFIT
Speaking about his meeting with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi on the sidelines of the UNGA, Kakar termed it a multilateral meeting that focused on a large number of bilateral and multilateral interests. Commenting on the Jaranwala
Weekly inflation, measured by the Sensitive Price Index (SPI), has surged to new highs for the third consecutive week. Official data revealed a year-onyear increase of 38.66 percent in short-term inflation for the week ending on September 21, marking an alarming trend in rising prices. The ongoing depreciation of the Pakistani rupee, coupled with soaring petrol prices, sales tax burdens, and mounting electricity bills are identified as the primary contributors to the persistent inflationary trend. But the most important factor contributing to inflation is the steep increase in petroleum products. During the week under review, the retail price of petrol witnessed an 8.51 percent increase, while diesel prices rose by 5.54 percent. These price hikes have led to elevated transport costs and have subsequently driven up the cost of moving goods, affecting consumers across the country. To meet local demand, Pakistan has become increasingly reliant on imports of essential vegetables, including tomatoes, onions, and potatoes, primarily sourced from neighboring Afghanistan.
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tragedy, the premier said the government took speedy action as a responsible state against the perpetrators of the tragic incident. Commenting on the economic situation in the country, the prime minister said foreign investors are interested in investing in Pakistan because of the government’s new policies, highlighting that attracting foreign investments in all sectors was the interim set-up's priority. Kakar said the government believed in a no-holds-barred foreign investment regime and had constituted the Special Investment Facilitation Council to facilitate foreign investors, bolster their confidence and expedite project implementation in priority areas of agriculture, IT, energy and minerals and mining. He added there is no shortage of essential commodities and we have stopped the hoarding of flour and sugar with an effective crackdown and policy measures.
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Kashmir not India’s integral part – never was, nor will be: Pakistan UNITED NATIONS STAFF REPORT
Pakistani and Indian delegates engaged in a verbal duel at the UN after Pakistan’s Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar drew the world community’s attention to the unresolved Kashmir dispute and to India’s grave human rights abuses in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir. The Indian delegate Petal Gahlot reacted to the Pakistan Prime Minister’s reference to the deteriorating situation in occupied Jammu and Kashmir during the general debate at the 78th session of the UN General Assembly, claiming that the Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India. “Pakistan has no locus standi to comment on our domestic matters,” she asserted. Pakistan’s delegate, Saima Saleem, hit back. She rejected India’s claim that Jammu and Kashmir was its integral part, saying “It never was, it never will be.”
The UN Security Council has affirmed that the final disposition of the territory will be decided by a plebiscite, which India accepted under Article 25 of the Charter of the United Nations. India, she said, had failed to implement the UNSC resolutions, “through fraud and force”, and suppressed the Kashmiris’ demands for the right to self-determination by imposing occupation and, on 5 August 2019, annexing Jammu and Kashmir. The Pakistani delegate said that the entire Kashmiri population has been the victim of India’s brutal tactics. “A classic colonial-settler project is underway,” Saima Saleem said. The Kashmiri freedom struggle is not terrorism, she said, adding that the resistance to foreign occupation is “just and legal” under international law. “It is India’s oppression that is illegal,” the Pakistani delegate said. India must be held accountable for its war crimes in the territory; it is not a victim but a serial sponsor of terrorism against each of its neighbours, the Pakistani delegate stressed.
Pakistan, China agree to revise cost of ML-1 project
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Pakistan and China have reportedly reached a consensus to revise the cost of the Mainline-1 (ML-1) project to approximately $6.6 billion, with an amended project design slated for submission to Pakistan by October 31. ML-1 comprises a 1,872kilometer railway track connecting Karachi to Peshawar traversing Sindh and Punjab provinces. The project involves upgrading and doubling the track, laying a new one with an improved subgrade for speeds of up to 160 km/h, all as part of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). According to a report by Dawn, Pakistan’s Communications Secretary, Khurram Agha, who leads the Joint Working Groups (JWG) for
Aviation, Railways, and Infrastructure within CPEC, along with Railways Secretary Mazhar Ali Shah, is scheduled to attend a JWG meeting in Beijing. The purpose of this meeting is to finalize cost estimates and address associated matters. If agreed by both sides, the adjusted cost of the ML-1 project will stand at around $6.6 billion, a notable decrease from the earlier estimate of $9.8 billion due to delays. This cost revision is attributed to China’s flexibility and modifications in project design, coupled with Pakistan’s willingness to independently develop certain segments, further contributing to cost savings. An official announcement regarding this development is expected during the forthcoming visit of Pakistan’s care-
taker Prime Minister, Anwaarul Haq Kakar, to China on October 18. During this visit, he will participate in annual events related to China’s One Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). In addition to the cost revision for the ML-1 project, China and Pakistan will also discuss four previously delayed projects, including the Mirpur-MuzaffarabadMansehra Motorway, ZhobDera Ismail Khan Motorway, and Babusar Top. Formal negotiations on these projects are scheduled to take place during JWG meetings in the coming week. These developments were reviewed during a recent meeting on CPEC projects, where the caretaker Minister for Planning and Development, Mohammad Sami Saeed, urged all ministries and divisions to expedite CPEC projects.
With polls months away, ECP comes up with key amends to election rules ISLAMABAD
STAFF REPORT
The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Saturday suggested several amendments to the election rules. As the political parties gear up for contesting the general elections, the ECP outlined the changes, some of which suggest new obligations for the candidates. The ECP has proposed amended rules including rule 51, 52(3), 56(3), 66(4), 71(2), 84(4), 85(2), 87(2), 134(1), 134(2), 134(2A), 134A, 137(1), 143(1), 143(4), 158(1), 158(3), 161(1), Form41(g), Form41(h)(ii), Form 67, Form 68, and Annexures, and Form 69. A notification issued by the ECP stated that Section 239 of the Election Act, 2017, empowers the commission to make rules for the conduct of polls. “[…] in view of different scenarios and to resolve the predicaments arisen with time, the Election Commission has carried out various amendments in rules,” it stated. The electoral watchdog also gave a deadline for the objections on the proposed changes, which can be submitted by October 7. According to the key proposals, the candidates will be required to operate a separate bank account for poll expenses. “Provided that a candidate shall open an exclusive bank account or dedicate an existing bank account already opened with a scheduled bank to maintain transactions of election expenses and shall attach a statement of the said bank account starting with entries of seven days prior to the election schedule with the nomination papers for election to an Assembly or the Senate on Form A. The bank account so opened or dedicated shall not be a joint signatory account.” The candidates will deposit the sum of money with an application for contest in the national treasury, and it will not be refundable. “And thereafter sub-rule (4) of rule 52 shall stand omitted.” The candidates will maintain a register of receipts and payments and all financial records and details to support every payment made in respect of election expenses, and submit them to the returning officer “in Form C appended to the Act”. Moreover, if a candidate allows another person to bear his election expenses on his behalf, they must also maintain record/details of it. “[…] maintain record/details of election expenses incurred for his election campaign by that person showing his name, copies of NIC/NICOP (resident of Pakistan having Pakistani NIC or overseas Pakistani holding NICOP) issued by NADRA, types of expenses incurred, source of income of the person, address, phone number.” The ECP will reconcile the total sum of expenses recorded in Forms C, 67 and 68 within the permissible limit of the election expenses of the returned candidate. The RO will publish the list of contesting candidates with their respective symbols at some conspicuous place in his office, furnish a copy of it to the contesting candidate, district election commissioner, provincial election commissioner and to ECP, which will upload it for display on its website. The RO will “in presence of contesting candidates and one of their election agents duly authorised by such candidate as may be present”, open the packet containing the ballot papers which have been excluded from the count by the presiding officer. The RO will personally seal the “provisional and final consolidated statement of results of the count and final consolidated results” after preparing on Form47, 48 and 49, respectively. Two new forms namely Form-67 and Form-68 shall be added after Form 66. “The Commission shall reconcile the total sum of expenses recorded in Forms C,67 and 68 within the permissible limit of the election expenses of the returned candidate.” Earlier this week, in a much-awaited move, the electoral authority had announced that elections will be held in January next year following the completion of the delimitation process. Polls were supposed to have taken place within 90 days, but the election watchdog said it needed more time to redraw constituencies following the latest population census. “The final list of constituencies will be published on November 30. After that, the elections will be held in the last week of January 2024, after a 54-day election programme,” the commission said in a statement. Amid calls for holding elections within the 90-day stipulated time, a senior official at the ECP ruled out the possibility of polls in the constitutionally mandated period even if the delimitation exercise is halted.
Nepra approves Rs3.28/unit hike, adding Rs135.5b burden g
POWER DIVISION HAD SOUGHT RS6.20/UNIT INCREASE TO ADDRESS RS146B FINANCING GAP PROFIT
AHMAD AHMADANI
The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) has given the green light to an electricity rate increase of up to Rs3.28 per unit, adding an additional cost of Rs135.5 billion to consumers. This adjustment falls under the quarterly tariff adjustment (QTA) and is aimed at covering the additional expenses resulting from currency devaluation, interest rate
hikes, and related factors. The recent tariff increase is attributed to various factors, including capacity charges, Variable O&M, additional recovery on incremental sales, use of system charges, Market Operator Fee, and the FCA impact on T&D losses for the fourth quarter of FY2022-23. Earlier, consumers were paying an extra Rs1.25 per unit due to ongoing quarterly adjustments, with these adjustments set to conclude in September. Now, the new
Rs1.25 per unit charge will persist, with an additional Rs2.03 per unit added for the next six months. Originally, the Power Division had requested an increase of Rs 6.20 per unit for the fourth quarter of the 2022-23 fiscal year for ex-Wapda distribution companies (Discos) to address Rs 146 billion financing gap within three months. However, due to fear of public outcry against the steep tariff hike, they later sought Rs 3.55 per unit increase over six months.
Nepra has now granted permission for positive quarterly adjustments of Rs135.5 billion, applicable to the fourth quarter of FY 2022-23. These charges will be recovered from consumers of ex-WAPDA Distribution Companies between October 2023 and March 2024. The power regulator also recommended that the government consider maintaining a uniform consumer-end tariff for K-Electric (KE) and state-owned distribution companies, even after privatization, potentially
through direct or indirect subsidies. Consequently, KE consumers will be billed at a rate of Rs3.2814 per kWh, with recovery taking place over the same six-month period from October 2023 to March 2024. The impact of the electricity tariff increase will vary across different consumer categories. For households with a sanctioned load of less than 5kW, notable changes have been introduced, while the “Life Line” category for those using up to 50 or 51-100 units remains unaffected.